To be able to marshal out individually an object from a long row of such objects is often necessary in the handling of small objects which are, for example, to be applied onto something. A concrete example of this, for which the present invention is particularly suited, is the handling of opening arrangements before these are applied on a packaging container.
Packaging containers for liquid foods are often manufactured from a material web which, for example, may consist of a core layer of paper or paperboard to which are laminated different layers of thermoplastics and possibly aluminium. The material web is formed in a filling machine and sealed to form a tube which is filled with the desired product contents. The tube is transversely sealed repeatedly and is separated in these transverse seals to form individual packaging containers. After final forming, the packaging container often assumes a parallelepipedic configuration.
In order to facilitate the opening of these packaging containers, and also to make for reclosure of them, the packaging containers are provided with an outer opening arrangement. These opening arrangements are most generally applied to the packaging containers in special machines where one opening arrangement is applied over a prefabricated opening indication in the packaging container wall.
The opening arrangement may be of highly varying appearance. Normally, it consists of a flat portion which is intended to be placed against the packaging container. This flat portion often constitutes a unit together with a threaded opening and pouring spout. The opening arrangement also most generally displays a screw cap fixedly screwed in place on the pouring spout. Furthermore, the opening arrangement may include a membrane over the pouring spout, or alternatively other protection against unintentional or unauthorised opening of the packaging container.
The prefabricated opening arrangements are sorted in association with the special machine which applies the opening arrangements, or alternatively in the same machine. In order to be able to be handled in an efficient and exact manner before the application, the opening arrangements must be oriented in the same manner and preferably in a long row of opening arrangements correctly oriented.
The opening arrangements are thereafter to be advanced one by one in order to be applied on a packaging container. Marshalling out one opening arrangement from a long row of opening arrangements has hitherto been put into effect in that specific pushers displace out one opening arrangement at a time, 90° from the row of opening arrangements. This has been possible in that the prior art opening arrangements were provided with flat portions which have at least two straight edges, at 90° in relation to one another.
However, new opening arrangements have been designed in such a manner that the flat portion only has two straight edges which are parallel with each other. This novel type of opening arrangement has made it necessary to marshal out each individual opening arrangement straight out from the row of opening arrangements, i.e. in the longitudinal direction of the row.